Articles | Volume 19, issue 13
https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-19-3337-2022
© Author(s) 2022. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-19-3337-2022
© Author(s) 2022. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Research article
| 
15 Jul 2022
Research article |
| 15 Jul 2022
| 15 Jul 2022
Modelling the effects of benthic fauna on carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus dynamics in the Baltic Sea
Baltic Nest Institute, Baltic Sea Centre, Stockholm University,
Stockholm, 10691, Sweden
Oleg Pavlovitch Savchuk
Baltic Nest Institute, Baltic Sea Centre, Stockholm University,
Stockholm, 10691, Sweden
Bo Gustav Gustafsson
Baltic Nest Institute, Baltic Sea Centre, Stockholm University,
Stockholm, 10691, Sweden
Tvärminne Zoological Station, University of Helsinki, Hanko,
10900, Finland
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Geosci. Model Dev., 17, 7157–7179, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-17-7157-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-17-7157-2024, 2024
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Methane (CH4) cycling in the Baltic Proper is studied through model simulations, enabling a first estimate of key CH4 fluxes. A preliminary budget identifies benthic CH4 release as the dominant source and two main sinks: CH4 oxidation in the water (92 % of sinks) and outgassing to the atmosphere (8 % of sinks). This study addresses CH4 emissions from coastal seas and is a first step toward understanding the relative importance of open-water outgassing compared with local coastal hotspots.
Julia Muchowski, Martin Jakobsson, Lars Umlauf, Lars Arneborg, Bo Gustafsson, Peter Holtermann, Christoph Humborg, and Christian Stranne
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We show observational data of highly increased mixing and vertical salt flux rates in a sparsely sampled region of the northern Baltic Sea. Co-located acoustic observations complement our in situ measurements and visualize turbulent mixing with high spatial resolution. The observed mixing is generally not resolved in numerical models of the area but likely impacts the exchange of water between the adjacent basins as well as nutrient and oxygen conditions in the Bothnian Sea.
Karol Kuliński, Gregor Rehder, Eero Asmala, Alena Bartosova, Jacob Carstensen, Bo Gustafsson, Per O. J. Hall, Christoph Humborg, Tom Jilbert, Klaus Jürgens, H. E. Markus Meier, Bärbel Müller-Karulis, Michael Naumann, Jørgen E. Olesen, Oleg Savchuk, Andreas Schramm, Caroline P. Slomp, Mikhail Sofiev, Anna Sobek, Beata Szymczycha, and Emma Undeman
Earth Syst. Dynam., 13, 633–685, https://doi.org/10.5194/esd-13-633-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/esd-13-633-2022, 2022
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The paper covers the aspects related to changes in carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorus (C, N, P) external loads; their transformations in the coastal zone; changes in organic matter production (eutrophication) and remineralization (oxygen availability); and the role of sediments in burial and turnover of C, N, and P. Furthermore, this paper also focuses on changes in the marine CO2 system, the structure of the microbial community, and the role of contaminants for biogeochemical processes.
H. E. Markus Meier, Madline Kniebusch, Christian Dieterich, Matthias Gröger, Eduardo Zorita, Ragnar Elmgren, Kai Myrberg, Markus P. Ahola, Alena Bartosova, Erik Bonsdorff, Florian Börgel, Rene Capell, Ida Carlén, Thomas Carlund, Jacob Carstensen, Ole B. Christensen, Volker Dierschke, Claudia Frauen, Morten Frederiksen, Elie Gaget, Anders Galatius, Jari J. Haapala, Antti Halkka, Gustaf Hugelius, Birgit Hünicke, Jaak Jaagus, Mart Jüssi, Jukka Käyhkö, Nina Kirchner, Erik Kjellström, Karol Kulinski, Andreas Lehmann, Göran Lindström, Wilhelm May, Paul A. Miller, Volker Mohrholz, Bärbel Müller-Karulis, Diego Pavón-Jordán, Markus Quante, Marcus Reckermann, Anna Rutgersson, Oleg P. Savchuk, Martin Stendel, Laura Tuomi, Markku Viitasalo, Ralf Weisse, and Wenyan Zhang
Earth Syst. Dynam., 13, 457–593, https://doi.org/10.5194/esd-13-457-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/esd-13-457-2022, 2022
Short summary
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Based on the Baltic Earth Assessment Reports of this thematic issue in Earth System Dynamics and recent peer-reviewed literature, current knowledge about the effects of global warming on past and future changes in the climate of the Baltic Sea region is summarised and assessed. The study is an update of the Second Assessment of Climate Change (BACC II) published in 2015 and focuses on the atmosphere, land, cryosphere, ocean, sediments, and the terrestrial and marine biosphere.
Oleg P. Savchuk, Alexey V. Isaev, and Nikolay N. Filatov
Biogeosciences Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-2021-249, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-2021-249, 2021
Manuscript not accepted for further review
Short summary
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Empirical information on the nutrient cycles in the second largest European Lake Onego is almost lacking. We covered the deficit by realistic simulation of the lake’s ecosystem dynamics during 1985–2015 with the 3D ecohydrodynamic model. Important results include: a) 3D dynamics of major nutrient variables and fluxes; b) quantification of the spring phytoplankton bloom, previously overlooked; c) coherent nutrient budgets. The model is a useful tool for forecasting with different scenarios.
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Short summary
We studied the effects of benthic fauna, animals living on or in the seafloor, on the biogeochemical cycles of carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus using a model of the Baltic Sea ecosystem. By eating and excreting, the animals transform a large part of organic matter sinking to the seafloor into inorganic forms, which fuel plankton blooms. Simultaneously, when they move around (bioturbate), phosphorus is bound in the sediments. This reduces nitrogen-fixing plankton blooms and oxygen depletion.
We studied the effects of benthic fauna, animals living on or in the seafloor, on the...
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